1. Jill Binder jillbinder.com Twitter: @jillbinder
Empowering Speakers: A Journey to Encourage Women and Diverse Groups at WordCamps
Jill Binder
jillbinder.com

2. A Request About Questions
Please hold questions until end
Big topic that can get easily derailed with interesting discussions
We’ll have a big QandA and discussion section

3. By show of hands
How many have done done public speaking about anything WordPress-related before?

4. How many haven’t yet but have thought about it?
By show of hands
How many haven’t yet but have thought about it?

5. How many here are organizers of WordPress-related events?
By show of hands
How many here are organizers of WordPress-related events?

6. WordCamp Vancouver 2013 Planning Meeting

7. WordCamp Vancouver 2013 Planning Meeting
40 applications

8. WordCamp Vancouver 2013 Planning Meeting
52 applications

9. WordCamp Vancouver 2013 Planning Meeting
40 were applicable

10. WordCamp Vancouver 2013 Planning Meeting
14 spots

11. WordCamp Vancouver 2013 Planning Meeting
7 women applied

12. WordCamp Vancouver 2013 Planning Meeting
6 were a fit

13. WordCamp Vancouver 2013 Planning Meeting
Added a third track: Increased to 28 spots

14. WordCamp Vancouver 2013 Planning Meeting
2 women said no to the speaker acceptance for family obligations X

15. WordCamp Vancouver 2013 Planning Meeting
4 women

16. WordCamp Vancouver 2013 Planning Meeting
Guess how many men said no for family obligations?

17. Left blank intentionally

18. WordCamp Vancouver 2013 Planning Meeting
0 men dropped out for family obligations

19. WordCamp Vancouver Speakers 20134

20. Sad cat

21. What is stopping women?
I chatted with many other organizers at WordCamp San Francisco 2013
Common problem for everyone
We actually had a high number
Wanted to accept more women, but they just weren’t applying

22. Before I go on…
Going to talk about gender like it’s a binary, even though it’s not; Women blob, men blob
WOMEN
MEN

23. Why? Who cares? It should be the “best speaker,” right?
(aka speakers who have had a lot of experience speaking…)
Audience not represented by the speakers
Open source users not represented by the speakers
Our speakers help shape our technology
Unique perspectives and multi-roles

24. What is stopping women? A lot of reasons
One we can actually do something about:
When we ask women, “Hey, will you speak at my conference?”
Their two most common answers:
A lot of societal reason

25. "I don't know enough about … to give a talk on it."

26. "What would I talk about?"

27. Dispelling the “expert” myth
Person who said yes
Impostor syndrome
Expert on your own experiences

28. My Workshop Idea Brainstorm
Show they have literally a hundred of ideas (that is how many we generate in an exercise)
(Biggest problem then becomes picking one!)

29. WordCamp Central
Shaped the workshop

30. WordCamp Central Talk formats How To Discussion Panel Story-based
Case Study
Workshop

31. Workshop (Vancouver version)
First workshop was shaped by:
Andrea Middleton (WC Central)
Jen Mylo (WC Central)
myself

32. Workshop (Vancouver version)
Fleshed out by our team in Vancouver:
Vanessa Chu
Kate Moore Hermes
myself

33. Workshop (Vancouver version)
Second workshop, merged with global work, refined, added content:
First year’s team
Mandi Wise (previous participant who had become a frequent speaker)

34. Cities that were inspired and created their own workshops
Seattle
Portland
Montreal
Montreal ran it in New York

35. WordCamp San Fran 2014
Asked us to create workshop script for all diversity
We gathered all the best from Seattle, Montreal, Portland, and Vancouver
Morgan Kay, Kathryn Presner, Tammie Lister, Andrea Middleton, Jen Mylo
(Apologies if I’ve missed anyone)

36. Workshop Agenda Introductions Why are we holding a workshop for
Dispelling speaker myths
Why do you want to speak?
Talk formats
Big Braindump

37. Workshop Agenda Narrowing Selection Refining Chosen Topic
Present Topic
Writing the Proposal
Coming up with a great title
Writing Your Bio

38. Workshop Agenda Present Titles and Pitches Writing The Outline
Present outline
Becoming a Better Speaker
Creating Great Slides

39. How Else Did We Get More Women?
(Ambitious: Dev Edition)
I networked with more women in WordPress
Online
In person
Our team sent out personal invitations to apply to WordPress women of our tricity region

40. Encouraged them to speak at small meetups first (WordPress and other, in and beyond Vancouver)
When we asked if they would apply, we mentored them:
Suggest things we know they could talk about
Explain that we didn’t want How-Tos as much as stories
Ask if they have a good story about something that they’ve learned

41. After all that
Still not many women applications 

42. Last Ditch Attempt

43. Last Ditch Attempt
8 retweets

44. Last Ditch Attempt (Extension)

45. Other Things We Could Do
Offer childcare
Meetings at different times that work for women with families.
Don’t hold all the events at 9pm at night.

46. We also… Not relating to women, but relating to diversity:
Made sure the venue was accessible
Elevator
Single stall washrooms available
Requested no scents

47. WordCamp Vancouver 2014: Dev Edition
60 applications

48. WordCamp Vancouver 2014: Dev Edition
18 spots

49. WordCamp Vancouver 2014: Dev Edition
20 women applied

50. Three times more women applicants in one year!

51. Three times more women applicants in one year
Three times more women applicants in one year! (And it was the Dev edition, too)

52. WordCamp Vancouver 2014: Dev Edition
9 women selected

53. Chosen speaker selection9

54. WordCamp Vancouver 2014: Dev Edition
1 woman and 1 man dropped out last minute X

55. Final Numbers with Dropouts

56. We Did This: 4 28 7 17

57. Community Impact Diversity in other ways People of colour
People of different physical abilities
Community leaders

59. You Can Use It!
training/

60. Questions / Discussion
Jill Binder
jillbinder.com
¥ What’s in our workshop
¥ What you can talk about
¥ What to do when ppl who identify as men complain about being left out